Employment

Overview

Ribbon is a leading, publicly traded, global provider of communications technology, employing thousands of individuals operating in more than 100 countries. Using our trusted solutions, our customers can offer services that improve the quality of life for billions of people around the world, support digital inclusion across markets and lower global greenhouse emissions through efficient bandwidth utilization and cloud-based applications.

Taking a responsible approach to employment and upholding employee rights are essential dimensions of good corporate citizenship.  By providing a workplace that is ethical, respectful and empowering for all, we inspire employees to work together to deliver our business objectives and make a positive contribution to society. In the employment of a diverse workforce and by investing in enhancing the skills and capabilities of our employees, we help create strong communities. Finally, by valuing each individual and upholding their rights, we demonstrate our commitment to responsible and sustainable business practices.

At Ribbon, our Approach to Employment is guided by our core values:

• Team We work as One Team, advancing together towards common and clear goals.
• Passion We take pride in and celebrate our achievements.
• Customer We strive to be a trusted advisor to our customers -listening to them, anticipating their needs and offering best in class solutions.
• Innovation Ribbon’s competitive advantage relies on our ability to offer innovative, creative and state-of-the-art technologies.
• TRUE We are open and transparent in everything we do, creating trust among employees, customers, partners, and vendors. TRUE stands for Transparency Respect Unpretentious Empowerment.

Our Approach

We aim to create a workplace that is engaging, inspiring, challenging and inclusive. We strive to be an employer of choice for our current employees and for future employees who are seeking an opportunity to join our dynamic business, positioned at the nexus of global communications technology and social transformation. We engage our employees by providing opportunities for personal and professional growth and maintaining a culture of open communications where everyone receives constructive performance feedback and is encouraged to offer new ideas about any aspect of the work we do and our ways of doing things.

Our Approach to Employment encompasses the following elements:

• Compliance: We aim to comply with all laws and regulations relating to employment in every country in which we operate. This includes but is not limited to applicable regulations governing health and safety, hours of work, discrimination and retaliation, slavery, whistleblower protections, and empowerment of historically disadvantaged groups.
• Culture: We aim to create an open, values-based culture in which every single employee can feel that they belong, that they are valued and that they are empowered to contribute to the best of their ability. We aim to ensure equitable opportunities are available to all to succeed in our organization.
• Rights: We believe in the value of all individuals and their inalienable rights as defined in the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the principles defined in the International Labor Organization’s Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work. We uphold fundamental and universally accepted labor rights that include, among others, our commitments to:
  • Prohibition of child labor. We do not employ persons under the age of 16 anywhere in our business.
  • Prohibition of forced or bonded labor. We do not tolerate any form of trafficking or unlawful exploitation of individuals.
  • Recognition of the right of employees to freedom of association and collective bargaining. 
  • A workplace free of discrimination.
• Compensation, Benefits and Flexible Working: We believe in fairly and competitively rewarding our employees. We aim to provide a base salary which represents at least a real living wage in each country of operation, beyond minimum wage levels as may be prescribed by law. We also maintain a program of benefits specific to and tailored to local market norms in each region to support employees with medical insurance, paid leave and other non-salary benefits such as time-off to care for dependents, childcare support and more. Additionally, we offer options to employees, where local requirements and business needs permit, to use flexible work schedules and/or work remotely to assist in managing work and other responsibilities.  
• Recognition: Beyond compensation, we reward employee achievements through a recognition program that enables employees to receive monetary or other benefits for strong achievement and contribution. (This program currently operates in the U.S. and EMEA regions).
• Engagement: We encourage the active participation of Ribbon employees in shaping our organizational processes and contributing to our collective success. We proactively advance engagement activities throughout the organization each year, including engagement in community and environmental activities. Our employee-led engagement committees operate at the global and local levels. We encourage our employees to provide feedback through frequent (and often anonymous) Employee Experience Surveys as well as through regular communication channels.
• Learning and Development: We believe investing in our employees’ professional development so that they can perform their current roles more effectively and can be prepared for roles of greater responsibility in the future. We continuously work to create enhanced opportunities for personal growth and development through training and educational resources. Our training programs utilize a combination of in-person and online programs and include core modules, some of which are mandatory, relating to ethical conduct, products and services, safety, human rights and anti-corruption, as well as additional tailored programs on topics such as leadership, management, project management and competency development. Learning and development is a key part of supporting employee performance, and all employees participate in an annual performance review in which their performance is assessed and learning and development objectives are established for the coming year.
• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion: We believe that having a diverse group of people who contribute different perspectives and viewpoints is critical to the success of our organization. We are committed to fostering and maintaining a diverse workforce and a culture of inclusion. For more details, see our Approach to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in our Workforce.
• Health, Safety and Wellbeing: We strive for a workplace that is free of hazards for our employees. We place utmost importance on compliance with applicable health and safety regulations across all our business facilities and operations. For more details, see our Approach to Health, Safety and Wellbeing.
• Privacy: We respect our employee rights to privacy and comply with privacy laws and regulations in force around the world. For more details, see our Approach to Information Security and Data Privacy.
• Information, Communication and Grievance Mechanisms: We take a proactive approach to informing employees of their rights and obligations as Ribbon employees. New employees receive a Welcome Kit which includes necessary information about the workplace, rights, duties and communication channels. We maintain ongoing communications to employees about updates and changes related to their employment at Ribbon. All employees have the opportunity to raise queries, requests and grievances through reporting channels that are available to them in their country of employment. We prohibit retaliation against any individual who reports ethical or other misconduct in good faith.    
• Employee Obligations: Our Approach to Employment includes informing, educating and supporting employees in relation to their obligation to uphold Ribbon’s Code of Conduct which governs our expectation of employees with regard to ethical conduct in all their dealings in and on behalf of Ribbon. Employees receive training on our Code of Conduct. In cases where employees are proven to be in breach of the Code of Conduct following full and fair investigation, Ribbon will take appropriate disciplinary action that can range from a verbal or written warning through to immediate termination, depending on the circumstances of the incident.  
• Talent Acquisition: We aim to recruit employees who respect our values and have or can develop the skills and capabilities to contribute to our success. We aim to recruit as far as possible from local communities and ensure our recruitment processes are inclusive, respectful and transparent. Where possible, we aim to fill open positions from within, and provide opportunities for employees to apply for open positions ahead of external recruitment. We seek to recruit employees in a way that promotes gender balance and diversity in our workforce. For more details, see our Approach to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in our Workforce.
• Job Security and Restructuring: We strive to maintain employment security for our workforce and undertake restructuring programs when all other options to meet business objectives have been exhausted. If restructuring is required, we do so in a responsible manner, aiming to minimize compulsory redundancies and providing support for employees who are required to leave the company.

Supporting Global Sustainable Development

Our Approach to Employment directly supports UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 8 which calls for the promotion of sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all. Our Approach to Employment specifically advances SGD 8 targets as follows:

• Target 8.5: Full employment with decent work with equal pay
• Target 8.7: Protect labor rights and promote safe working environments

Governance   

Ribbon’s Senior Vice President (SVP) for Human Resources is accountable for our employment policies and programs. The SVP is a member of Ribbon’s Executive Management Team, and reports to the Chief Executive Officer. Ribbon’s Board of Directors is engaged in reviewing and approving Ribbon’s Human Resources strategy and performance on at least an annual basis.

Disclosure

We report transparently to our stakeholders on our employment strategy, progress and performance in our annual Sustainability Report. Additionally, our Annual Report on Form 10-K includes highlights of our human capital strategy and performance each year.

Version 3: April 2022